Battlecruiser (Hiigaran)
|name = Battlecruiser |image1 = Hiigaran battlecruiser.jpg |image2 = HiigaranBattlecruiserRM.png |group = Super Capital Ship |role = Anti-Capital Ship |type = Battlecruiser |cost = 4000 |mass = |length = |acceleration = 1.9 |speed = 69 |drive = Short Jump |armament = 2 Dual Heavy Ion Cannons, 4 Arbiter Kinetic Burst Cannons, 4 Pulsar Beams |eras = Homeworld 2 Era |affiliation = Hiigaran }} The Battlecruiser was the largest combat vessel produced by the Hiigaran navy during the Vaygr War. The primary weapons of the Battlecruiser are Heavy Ion Cannon turrets, each one able to generate two long range beams capable of taking down a frigate with a single salvo long before the frigate could come close to its own weapons range. Additional armaments include Arbiter Kinetic Burst Cannons capable of taking down corvettes, and heavily damaging most Capital Ships. These cannons are mounted on the sides and the forward section of the Battlecruiser, allowing it to aim at several targets at a time. Overview Because it has a very limited anti-fighter armament, the ship itself cannot withstand heavy bomber attacks and therefore is usually escorted by multiple anti-fighter units. Each Battlecruiser is capable of repairing strike craft in its hangar bay, allowing its escort to withstand heavier fighter attacks and recover from damage between skirmishes. They have 2 Module slots. Hiigaran Battlecruisers are more flexible and defensible than their Vaygr counterparts. While the Vaygr battlecruiser must point itself at a target to engage it with its Trinity Cannon, the Hiigaran version can fire at targets from nearly any direction. Due to the forward nature of its armament, a Vaygr battlecruiser can be almost completely paralyzed by disabling its engine subsystem, as it can no longer aim its primary weapons. Conversely, a Hiigaran battlecruiser is much less vulnerable as all three of its subsystems must be disabled in order to cripple the vessel. It is also able to quickly redirect a still-firing ion cannon turret to another target after destroying the first to avoid wasting firepower, making this ship brutally lethal to groups of frigates. Even so, the Hiigaran Battlecruiser's positioning of the massive ion cannons (one in the dorsal and one in the ventral positions) mean that the combat effectiveness is reduced by half when attacking from above or below, as only one cannon is able to harm the target. As the Vaygr counterpart notably possesses essentially omnidirectional missile launchers, this gives an edge to a clever Vaygr commander by simply hyperspacing on top of a Hiigaran Battlecruiser. Also, unlike the Vaygr counterpart the Hiigaran Battlecruiser's primary firepower, the ion cannons, can be disabled by bombers. With both ion cannons disabled its damage output is extremely crippled, whereas the Vagyr battlecruiser with its missile launcher disabled is still very lethal with its Trinity Cannon if one is not careful. A critical note is that the Hiigaran Battlecruiser does not move fast enough to outmaneuver the Vaygr Battlecruiser turning to aim its Trinity Cannon when approaching at long range. It is highly recommended to send bombers first to disable the Vagyr Battlecruiser's engines before attacking. Though the Hiigaran Battlecruiser is one of the largest combat ships the Hiigarans ever built, there were larger ships available to them, including Sajuuk's Wrath, a ship built around 6525 GSY, Tanis Station, the Progenitor Dreadnaught and the Shipyard Appearances * Category:Homeworld 2: Ships Category:Homeworld 2: Hiigaran Ships